An Abundance of Leather
by magnificentmiscreant
Summary: Emma gets nostalgic as she and Hook review the contents of her closet. Set shortly after season 3. This was meant to be Captain Swan fluff but veered toward h/c. Features slight Gremma angst.


"Y'know Swan, I never thought I'd meet a woman who owned more leather than I do."

Emma stood by the front closet in her new apartment, picking out a jacket before they headed to breakfast at Granny's. It was a routine they'd quickly fallen into, him stopping by each morning so they could walk over and eat together before they faced whatever madness each new day brought.

"Well, not all of us like wearing the same thing every day of our lives."

"I've told you, I am not going shopping. All these newfangled garments have no appeal to me."

"Oh, I'll wear you down eventually. It's just a matter of time."

Killian rolled his eyes and gestured toward the closet. "Would you just pick one?"

"Well, I know which one I'm not wearing," Emma said as she lifted out a hanger with a brown jacket on it. "It seems like every time I put this on I fall down a magic portal. I think I'd better retire it for a while." She moved it to the back of the closet.

"What, you didn't enjoy your little adventures in the Enchanted Forest?" The fake hurt in the pirate's voice earned him a look from Emma, though it soon softened into a smile.

"I wouldn't trade them for anything. But that doesn't mean I want to do it again so soon."

"Fair enough. Well, that's one option down and... quite a lot still to go. Maybe you'll be ready by breakfast tomorrow, shall I come back then?"

Emma shot him another look and he smirked back at her. "It's probably too warm for this one." She flicked past the fur-lined black one that still reminded her of motorcycle rides with August. She didn't wear it much any more. Truth be told, she missed her friend, and didn't like to dredge up those memories often. "And I'm not really feeling the blue today." Emma wasn't usually a superstitious person, but she couldn't bring herself to wear a colour associated with sadness when things were going so well for once.

"And this one?" He lifted it out with a deft flick of his hook. "Looks a little big for you, love."

A lump caught in Emma's throat as she saw the familiar stripe of red on the collar. "Killian -"

"Let me guess, belonged to an old flame? Or maybe not so old? Is that why it took so long to win you over, you had a secret beau the whole time? Do we need to hold a duel for your affections?" he teased.

"Killian, please -"

Seeing the distressed look on her face, he immediately stopped and returned the jacket to her, pulling her in for a hug with his other arm. "Sorry, Emma, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you." He gently stroked her hair as he looked into her eyes. "You alright, love?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, I just -" Emma brushed away a tear as he released her. "You were right. It did belong to an old flame, or something like that, anyway."

"You don't have to explain anything to me. I was just teasing, I didn't think -"

"No, I want to tell you. We talked about being open with each other, and it's not like it's a secret." She swallowed hard, trying to keep her feelings under control. She'd never talked about Graham's death much, and was surprised by how much it still hurt to revisit those memories. She looked down at the jacket, which was a little big for her. There had been times she'd wrapped herself up in it and inhaled his scent, looking for some sort of comfort that never seemed to come. "This belonged to - to someone I cared about. Someone I met when I first came here."

"To Storybrooke? So he was from our world?"

"Yes, but I didn't know it at the time. He started to get his memories back, and - I didn't believe him, I thought he was delusional, but -" she shook her head. "He died."

"I'm sorry, love," Killian whispered as he wrapped his arms around her.

She leaned into him, pressing her face into his chest to hide a few more tears. "Me too. We'd just started getting to know each other, really, but he was a good man."

"You do seem to have a talent for picking them," he smiled. "At least, the ones that don't turn out to be monkeys."

"You're never going to let that go, are you?" Emma rolled her eyes as she regained her composure and carefully replaced Graham's jacket in the closet.

"Not on your life, Swan."

His cheeky grin couldn't help but bring out a smile of her own. She reached out and grabbed a jacket decisively, shrugging into it. "You ready?"

"That one?" He cocked an eyebrow.

"What's wrong with this one?"

"I just can't believe it took you that long to pick the same one you always wear."

"Not always!"

"Usually."

"Well - it's my favourite."

His sarcastic grin faded into a genuine one. "Mine too. You do look good in red, love."

Emma smiled back and leaned in for a quick kiss. "Shall we?"

"Aye." He took her hand in his as he led the way out of the apartment.

Emma smiled as they started toward Granny's, thinking that maybe someday before too long, there would be another leather jacket hanging in the closet alongside hers.


End file.
